This invention relates generally to a vibration suppressing mounting apparatus, and more particularly to a mounting apparatus which is used to mount a vehicle air conditioning compressor within a housing.
Often, large motor vehicles have air conditioning units with compressors that are electrically powered, as opposed to being directly driven by the vehicle's engine. Previously, difficulty has been encountered in providing long lasting vibration isolating mounts for electrically powered vehicle air conditioning compressors.
In particular, air conditioning compressors in tractor trailer trucks, RVs, and motor homes encounter large amounts of vibration in addition to that caused by the operation of the compressor itself. Sources of this additional vibration include the vehicle's engine, and road surface contact. Damage to the mounts results in either costly and time-consuming repairs, or the discomfort of foregoing the use of air conditioning.
Generally, previous compressor mounting systems have consisted of three legs extending from the bottom of an axially vertical, cylindrical compressor. The legs are cylindrical elastomeric mounts which at one end are bolted to flanges on the bottom of the housing in which the compressor is mounted, and at the other end are bolted to the bottom of the compressor. A nut is suspended within the mount at one end, and a bolt is bonded to the other end, and extends axially outward. The nut and bolt are connected only by the elastomer which form the mount. Thus, the legs do not provide a rigid mount, but in effect are vibration absorbing elastomeric links between the compressor and housing.
Additionally, some previous mounting systems have had another mount at the top of the compressor. The top mount consists of a pin extending axially upward from the exterior of the compressor, and which passes through a hole in a mounting plate secured to the top of the housing. The pin is not rigidly secured to the mounting plate, however, there is little clearance for the pin within the hole, so the pin limits motion of the compressor.
These previous mounting systems have proven unsatisfactory in use due to their propensity for vibration related failures. In particular, the elastomeric mounts which form the legs will tear apart after a relatively short period of use, rendering the compressor inoperative. Since the flanges for the legs and the pin are usually integral with the compressor, it is desirable to still utilize those mounts so that the compressor itself will not have to be redesigned.
Thus, a need exists for a dependable vehicle air conditioning compressor mount which can be used in combination with existing mounting systems and which will sufficiently suppress vibration to extend the useful life of previously used mounts.